Tu Bie Chong (Di Bie Chong) / Zhe Chong 蟅蟲 - 土鳖虫 - Eupolyphaga/Steleophaga - Wingless Cockroach

Pharmaceutical Latin:	Eupolyphaga/Steleophaga
Common English:	Eupolyphaga Ground Beetle Wingless Cockroach

Properties

Taste	Temperature	Entering Meridians	Dosage
Salty (Bitter)	Cold Slightly Toxic	Liver Heart Spleen	Decoction: 3-12g Powder: 1-1.5g Cancers: 9-15g 3-9g (d), 1-1.5g (p) (Secondary source)

Actions

Indications/Syndromes

Breaks up and drives out Blood Stasis, invigorates Blood circulation and disperses lumps and masses

Blood Stasis with abdominal masses and amenorrhea

Swollen tongue due to Blood Stasis

Knits together sinews and joins bones

Traumatic injury with lacerations, contusions and fractures

Lumbar strain (toasted and ground into a powder)

CONTRAINDICATIONS

Contraindicated if there is no Blood Stasis.
Contraindicated during pregnancy.
It may cause sinus bradycardia.
It may cause allergic reaction affecting the skin.
It may cause generalized weakness, nausea, vertigo and gastrointestinal irritation.

INCOMPATIBILITIES

HERB/DRUG INTERACTIONS

Use with caution for patients taking anticoagulants such as heparin, warfarin (Coumadin) and enoxaparin (Lovenox) or antiplatelet drugs such as aspirin, dipyridamole (Persantine) and clopidogrel (Plavix) as concurrent use may have an additive or synergistic effect.

Rx. Et Rz. Rhei Da Huang	Rx. Curcumae Yu Jin Rx. Notoginseng San Qi Endothelium Corneum Gigeriae Galli Ji Nei Jin	Pollen Typhae Pu Huang Faeces Trogopterori Wu Ling Zhi
Breaks up fixed abdominal masses from Blood Stasis.	Hepatomegaly with pain and soreness of the right upper quadrant.	With additional Blood invigorators for ectopic pregnancies with amenorrhea, pain and fixed, palpable masses.
Olibanum Ru Xiang Myrrh Mo Yao Rz. Drynariae Gu Sui Bu Pyritum Zi Ran Tong	Rx. Et Rz. Rhei Da Huang Hirudo Shui Zhi Tabanus Meng Chong	Rx. Et Rz. Rhei Da Huang Sm. Persicae Tao Ren
Trauma induced pain, swelling and fracture.	Amenorrhea caused by Blood Stasis.	Menstrual pain or postpartum abdominal pain due to Blood Stasis.
Carapax Trionycis Bie Jia Rz. Sparganii San Leng Cx. Moutan Mu Dan Pi	Rx. Angelicae Sinensis Dang Gui Rz. Chuanxiong Chuan Xiong
Immobile abdominal masses due to Blood Stasis.	External or traumatic injuries with bruising and pain.

It frees the flow of breast milk.
Its main uses are healing traumatic injury and treating gynecological Blood Stasis.
It is reported to treat one-sided stiffness, swelling, hardening and pain of the tongue caused by severe accumulation of Heat toxins in erysipelas and scarlet fever. Secondary symptoms include difficulty swallowing and involuntary salivation. Decoct 6g with 3g of salt and take twice a day.
It inhibits cancer cell growth.
It is used for Liver and Stomach cancers.
For stagnation of breast milk, grind one piece to powder, dissolve it in water, filter, and drink.
For Stomach cancer and thick Phlegm, stew it and take it twice a day.
When cut with a knife it releases a syrupy liquid, yet if the halves are fitted back together they will rejoin and the insect will move again.
Tu Bie Chong and Hirudo Shui Zhi both break up Blood Stasis and drive out Stagnation. Tu Bie Chong additionally helps heal the sinews and bones, promotes lactation and treats numbness of the tongue. Compared with Shui Zhi, it is better suited to deficient conditions with Blood Stagnation.
Dry-fried Ground Beetle Chao Tu Bie Chong is less toxic and has a less objectionable odor.
Tu Bie Chong, Tabanus Meng Chong and Hirudo Shui Zhi are all very powerful at breaking up Blood stasis and can readily injure Qi when used improperly. Meng Chong is the strongest, Shui Zhi comes next, and Tu Bie Chong is the mildest.